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2006 Shree Air Mil Mi-8 crash

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Shree Air Mil Mi-8 Crash
A Mil Mi-8 helicopter, similar to the one involved in the accident
Accident
Date23 September 2006
SummaryPilot error along with poor airline training[1]
SiteGhunsa, Nepal
Aircraft
Aircraft typeMil Mi-8
OperatorShree Air
Registration9N-AHJ
Flight originPhungling, Nepal
DestinationGhunsa, Nepal
Occupants24
Passengers20
Crew4
Fatalities24
Survivors0

On 23 September 2006, a Shree Air Mil Mi-8 helicopter crashed on a chartered flight from Phungling to Ghunsa in Eastern Nepal. The accident killed all 24 passengers and crew on board, including an expedition of World Wide Fund for Nature, in the process of the creation of the indigenously owned and managed Kangchenjunga Conservation Area.[1][2]

Aircraft

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The helicopter involved with the accident was a Mil Mi-8 MTV 1.

Crew and victims

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On board the helicopter was an expedition of World Wide Fund for Nature returning from an conservation event in Taplejung District, where the Government of Nepal handed the management of the park around Kanchenjunga to the local people. The WWF team included Chandra Gurung and Harka Gurung. Other passengers on board the ill-fated helicopter included politician Gopal Rai.[3][4]

Casualties by nationality
Country Deaths (Crew) Deaths (Passengers)
   Nepal 2 14
 Russia 2 0
 UK 0 1
 USA 0 2
 Canada 0 1
 Australia 0 1
 Finland 0 1
Total 4 20

Casualties

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Source:[5]

  • Dr. Bigyan Acharya, Program Development Specialist USAID, Nepal
  • Margaret Alexander, Deputy Director, USAID, Nepal
  • Hem Raj Bhandari, Reporter, Nepal Television
  • Dr. Chandra Prasad Gurung, Country Representative, WWF Nepal
  • Dr. Harka Gurung, Advisor, WWF Nepal
  • Jennifer Headley, Coordinator, Himalaya/South Asia Program
  • Klim Kim, Flight Crew
  • Yeshi Choden Lama, Senior Program Officer, WWF Nepal
  • Tirtha Man Maskey, Former Director General, Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation
  • Pauli Mustonen, Charge d'Affaires, Embassy of Finland, Nepal
  • Dr. Damodar Parajuli, Acting Secretary, Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation
  • Matthew Preece, Program Officer, Eastern Himalayas Program, WWF US (Recently hired by USAID)[2]
  • Narayan Poudel, Director General, Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation
  • The Honorable Gopal Rai Minister of State, Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation, and his wife, Meena Rai
  • Sharad Rai, Director General, Department of Forests
  • Dr. Jillian Bowling Schlaepfer, Director of Conservation, WWF UK
  • Mingma Sherpa, Flight Crew
  • Mingma Norbu Sherpa, Managing Director, Eastern Himalayas Program, WWF US
  • Vijaya Shrestha, Central Committee Member, Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industry
  • Sunil Singh, Cameraman, Nepal Television
  • Valery Slafronov, Flight Crew
  • Guruwar Tandul, Flight Crew
  • Dr. Dawa Tshering, Chairperson, Kangchenjunga Conservation Area Management Council

Incident

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The helicopter took off at 10:45 NPT on 23 September 2006. Shortly afterwards, the helicopter was declared missing. Two days later, the wreckage of the helicopter was found south-west of Ghunsa.[6] Bad weather was assumed to have caused the crash at the beginning.[7]

Investigation

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The final report on the accident the committee of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal stated that the pilots entering cloudy areas in unfamiliar terrain as well as bad crew resource management were the main causes of the accident. It furthermore criticized the operating airline, Shree Air, on their training proceedings.[1]

Aftermath

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The memorial to the victims in Taplejung.

A day of mourning was observed throughout Nepal and schools and public offices were closed on 27 September 2006.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Final Report of Accident Investigation of Helicopter 9N-AHJ" (PDF). Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  2. ^ a b Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs (2006-11-30). "Eulogy at Memorial Service for Victims of Helicopter Crash in Nepal". 2001-2009.state.gov. Retrieved 2025-04-26.
  3. ^ "A conservation catastrophe for Nepal". BBC. 25 September 2006. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Helicopter Carrying 7 WWF Staff Crashes in Nepal" (PDF). WWF. 6 December 2006. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  5. ^ Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs (2006-11-30). "Eulogy for Victims of Helicopter Crash in Nepal". 2001-2009.state.gov. Retrieved 2025-04-26.
  6. ^ "Tragic Helicopter Crash in Nepal". WWF Nepal. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Teams recover Nepal crash bodies". BBC. 27 September 2006. Retrieved 1 June 2018.

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